Saturday, February 04, 2006

New used books

Bad morning at the used bookstore. Everything looked good, not a good thing when you don't have much money, plus the bunny must have been hiding out in the back room with the cat that bites customers. I tried to determine what a woman was reading at the end of the religion and philosophy aisle that would make her exclaim outloud, "That's amazing," but all she appeared to be looking at was a book that somewhat resembled a yearbook, with rows and rows of black and white old- timey portraits. Maybe she spotted an ancestor.

After putting books back and resisting offers to lower the price on a hardback Play It As It Lays (because my paperback isn't falling apart, no matter its age and multiple readings), I walked away with:

Soloman Gursky Was Here. Mordecai Richler. Richler pere was recommended to me by Book Puddle.

The Edge of the Sea and Under the Sea Wind. Rachel Carson. Because of Jim Lynch's The Highest Tide.

The Chymical Wedding. Lindsay Clarke. I knew I'd heard of this one before, but couldn't remember good or ill. Looking it up on Amazon I see it won the Whitbread in '89 and a raking over the coals by a reviewer whose name I recognize. I usually love Whitbread winners and books loathed by this particular reviewer, so I'm glad I didn't put this one back.